Coaster-brake.



M. H. JOHNSON.

COASTER BRAKE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3, $914.

1,138,956. Patented May 11, 1915.

30 2 i: Z6 Z5 anventoz/ MARTIN H. JOHNSON, OE LITTLE FALLS, MINNESOTA.

COASTERFBRAKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.-

Patented May 11, 1915..

Application filed March 3, 1914. Serial No. 822,230.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MARTIN H. JOHNSON, citizen of the United States, residing at Little Falls, in the county of Morrison and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Coaster Brakes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to coaster brakes for bicycles and similar vehicles, and has as its object to provide a coaster brake which will be simple in construction and devoid of complicated parts, and one which will not be liable to become disarranged or fail to operate as required.

It is one aim of the invention to provide a coaster brake in which all of the parts will be located exteriorly of the hub to which the brake is applied, so that the hub may remain of the ordinary size, and, furthermore, will not be subjected to any unusual strain or wear.

Another aim of the invention is to provide a coaster brake so constructed that when the brake is applied the parts will not be looked, as is the case in many devices of this class, but which, on the other hand, may be readily applied and readily and quickly released.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view through the coaster brake embodying the present invention. Fig. 2 is a group perspective view illustrating the parts of the brake disassembled.

In the drawings, the numeral 1 includes the hub upon which the brake mechanism is mounted, and the said hub is provided with the usual spoke flange 2 and is rotatably mounted upon a spindle, indicated at 3, and having the usual reduced threaded end 4 to which is to be secured the rear fork of the bicycle or the like. The hub 1' has its end portion exteriorly threaded, as indicated at 5, and fitted upon the said end of the hub is a thimble 6 which,in addition to being interiorly threaded for connection with the hub, is, for a purpose to be presently explained, exteriorly threaded as at 7. The outer end of the thimble 5 is provided with an inwardly projecting flange 8-which bears against the end of the hub when the thimble is threaded thereon, it being understood that due to the provision of this flange, the threads of the hub and thimble are relieved of'strain when force is exerted tending to further thread the thimble upon the hub.

The thimble 6 is provided at its inner end with an outstanding annular flange 9, and this flange is provided with a number of resilient fingers 10 stamped out therefrom and projecting toward the outer end of the thimble. Immediately adjacent the flange 9 the thimble is exteriorly of polygonal form, as indicated at 11, and the purpose of so constructing the same will be presently pointed out.

A brake hub, indicated by the numeral 12 is interiorly threaded and fitted upon the threaded portion 7 of the thimble 6 and this hub is exteriorly smooth and cylindrical. For a purpose to be presently explained, the brake hub 12 is provided at its outer end with an outstanding annular flange 13. The sprocket gear for transmitting motion to the hub 1 is indicated by the numeral 14, and is rotatably mounted upon the brake hub 12 at the inner end thereof, this gear being provided upon one side with beveled clutch teeth 15 arranged in an annular series and having abrupt faces 16, a similar series of teeth 17 being formed upon the other face of the said gear. A clutch disk 18 is pro vided with an axially located opening 19, the wall of which is polygonal to flt the portion 11 of the thimble 6, whereby the said disk is connected for rotation with the said thimble and the hub upon which the thimble is mounted. The clutch disk 18 is provided with an annular series of clutch teeth 20 which are beveled and which have abrupt faces 21 presented in a direction the opposite to the direction of rotation of the said thimble and hub. Thatface of the disk 18 other than the one which is provided with the teeth 20, is plane, and by reference to Fig. 1 of the drawings, it will be observed that the spring fingers 10 bear against the said face of the clutch disk and normally hold the same shifted toward the sprocket gear 14 so that the clutch teeth 20 will normally engage with the clutch teeth 15 upon the said gear, whereby when the gear is rotated forwardly, in the act of pedaling, corresponding rotary motion will be imparted to the huh I through the clutch disk 18 and the thimble 6 upon which it is mounted. It will be apparent, however, that due to the fact that the clutch teeth are beveled, the gear 14: may be rotated rearwardly with respect to the clutch disk 18 or may be held stationary while the said disk is rotating forwardly.

The brake mechanism includes a cylindrical casing which is relatively short and which is indicated in general by the'numeral 22, and this casing is provided with a fixed head 23 and a rotatable head, in the nature of a disk, 24, rotatably mounted upon the brake hub 12. The fixed head '23 of the casing is formed with an opening-25 rotatably receiving the brake hub 12, and by reference to' Fig. 1, it will be observed that the casing is so disposed upon the hub 12 that the said fixed head will restagainst the flange 13, the rotatable head of the casing be ing disposed against the open side of the body of the casing. The said head 24 is provided upon its face which is presented toward the sprocket gear 14, with a series of clutch teeth 26 which are designed to cooperate with the teeth 17 of the sprocket gear for a purpose to'be presently pointed out. As a means for holding the casing 22 against rotation upon" the brake hub 12, an arm 27 is secured at one end to the fixed head 23 of the said casing and extends forwardly :and is providedat' its forward end with a clip 28 designed-to besecured about one member of the rear forks of the bicycle.

The brake band of the brake mechanism is indicated by the-numeral 29 and is provided at its endswith loops or eyes 30, the loopor eye at one end of the band receiving a pin 31 which projects from the face of the disk 24 and the eye at the-other end of the band receiving-a pin 32 whicheprojectsfrom the inner side of the fixed head of the casing. The pin 31 is located :nearer the-axis of the .disk 24 than is the pin 32 with relation (to the axis of the casing 22, and the brake .band is arranged within the casingsoas to surround the brake hub 12, it being understood that when the disk 24 is rotated backwardly, the pin 31 will carry the associated end of the brake band in a correspondingdirection, thereby tightening theband about the brake .hub. Due to the relative location of the pins 31 and 32 with respect to theaxes of the'disk 24 and the casing 22 respectively, the first mentioned pin and'the corresponding end of the brake band may,'in the backward rotation of the'disk 24, pass the pin 32 without interfering therewith.

From the foregoing description of the invention,it will be apparent that as :the sprocket gear14 is rotated forwardly, the teeth 15-will be in clutch with the teeth 20 and forward rotative movement will be imparted to the hub. 1 through thethimble 6. Should it be desired to coast,.the.rider of the bicycle has merelyto cease pedaling, whereupon the sprocket gear 14will be held stationary, and,-due to the bevel of the clutchlteeth 10'and 20, will .beshifted to the right in Fig. 1 of the drawings and to position with its teeth 17 in clutch with the teeth 26. Should it be desired to apply the brake,

the rider has'only to backpedal, thereby rotating the sprocket gear 14 rearwardly as also the disk 24, upon which movement of thedisk, the brake band 29 will be tightened about the brake hub 12.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. In a coaster brake, a thimble to be fitted to a wheel hub, a clutch memberv carried by thethimble for rotation therewith, a gear mounted for rotation-andhaving a clutch :element. for cooperation with the said clutch member, means for automatically shifting theigear, abrake hub connected for rotation with the said thimble, a stationary member,

a" member mounted'for rotation, means for rotatlng the member and a brake band connected at its ends to the stationary-and rotatable members and surrounding the hub.

2. In a'ooaster brake,a thimble to be fitted to .a-wheel hub and carrying-a clutch memher, a brake hub connected to the thimble for rotation therewith, a stationary member upon the said brake hub, a member mounted upon the brake hub'for. turning movement and having a clutch member, a gearmounted for rotation between. the clutch member of .the'ithimble :and the last-mentioned clutch bers upon the said brake hub.

.3. In a coa'sterbr-ake, a thimble to be fitted to-a wheel hub and carrying a clutch member, abrake hub connected for rotation with the thimble, a gearmounted for rotation upon the said brake hub andhaving a clutch face opposingthe clutch .of the thimble, a

member mounted for rotation upon' the said brake hub, the said member and the said gear having clutch faces arranged to coact when the .gear is shifted, means for. automaticallydshifting the .gear, a stationary :member, and .a brake band surrounding the said "brake hub :and connectedto the rotatable member and the stationary member.

'4. Ina coaster brake, athimble to befitted to a wheel hub, .a clutch-member mounted upon the thimble for rotation therewith and shiftable thereon, resilient meansu-pon the thimble cooperating with 1 the I said clutch member to hold the said memberyieldably in'one direction, \a sprocket gear mounted for rotation in'juxtapositionv to the clutch member and havinga clutch face arranged .to'coact with the said member, the'said gear beingfshiftable and being provided with a second clutch face, means for-automatically shifting the gear, a brake hub oonnectedfor rotation with the thimble, a member mounted-for-movement upon the brake hub and having a clutch face opposing the last mentioned clutch face of the said gear, a fixed member, and a brake band surrounding the brake hub and connected at one end to the member which is mounted for turning movement upon the hub and at its other end to the said stationary member.

5. In a coaster brake, a thimble to be fitted to a wheel hub, a clutch member mounted for rotation with the thimble and slidable thereon, resilient fingers upon the thimble bearing against the said clutch member, whereby to yieldably hold the same in one direction, a gear mounted for rotation upon the brake hub and having a clutch face opposing the said clutch member and provided with a second clutch face, means for automatically shifting the gear, a member mounted for rotation upon the said brake hub and having a clutch face arranged to cooperate with the last mentioned clutch face of the gear, a member mounted upon the said brake hub and held stationary, and a brake band connected at its ends to the two last mentioned members and surrounding the said brake hub.

6. In a coaster brake, a hub member, a clutch member rotatable therewith, a gear having a clutch portion to cooperate with the said clutch member, means for automatically moving the gear to position for such cooperation, a brake element rotatable with the clutch member, a stationary and a rotatable member, and a brake band connected at its ends to the stationary and rota table members and arranged for cooperation with the brake element.

In. testimony whereof I afi'iX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

MARTIN H. JOHNSON. [1,. s.]

Witnesses: I

ARTHUR J oHNsoN, CARL L. ERICKSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

